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Video games are the perfect medium for telling truly terrifying stories. Because they’re immersive by nature, seeing your avatar startled, scared, and spooked by any number of animated horrors is like seeing the same happen to you. While AAA horror is still a popular genre—2014’s The Evil Within and Alien: Isolation had solid sales despite some mediocre reviews—indie horror games are pushing scares to screaming new heights. So what is the independent horror genre doing right?...

After the success of Injustice: Gods Among Us and their Mortal Kombat titles, developer NetherRealm had a lot to live up to with the sequel to their DC fighting game. Thankfully, Injustice 2 lived up to the hype and gave players a thoroughly enjoyable and substantial experience that ranks among the best comic book titles in recent years. A large part of that substance came from the wealth of customization on offer....

According to the listing on the PlayStation Store, not only will Injustice 2 fans get the bounty of Source Crystals for pre-ordering Wonder Woman, but also they will be given a theme for their PlayStation 4, which will presumably be inspired by the film. Those who lay down their money in advance for the movie’s digital iteration won’t get the items immediately, however, as the voucher code for both the Source Crystals and PS4 theme will be sent during the course of 7 to 10 business days after purchase....

At the beginning of the year, one of the biggest rumors surrounding Gotham Knights claimed WB Games was looking to create its own DC Games Universe, a Marvel Cinematic Universe-Esque series of connected games based on DC Comics expanded roster of heroes and villains. It was thought that WB Games would launch its next era of games with a Batman Arkham reboot from WB Games Montreal, followed by the long-anticipated next project from Rocksteady Studios; two games that have since been revealed as Gotham Knights and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League....

A GTA Online glitch can now turn the game’s MK II Oppressor hoverbikes invisible, making one of the best vehicles in the game even more formidable. Money will get you everywhere in GTA Online, and as is the case with real life, some people have more of it than others. Casual players who have been in the same lobby as someone traversing Los Santos in a tank causing all sorts of shenanigans will know that all too well....

Gunfire Reborn is an early access roguelike-FPS with RPG mechanics. It first launched on Steam back in May but managed to fly completely under my radar until the most recent Steam sale. For an EA title, I’m incredibly impressed by the level of polish the game already has. It’s got a long way to go in terms of customization, weapon and enemy balance, and variety, but Gunfire Reborn is an addicting roguelike with solid gunplay and fascinating collection of weapons and items to unlock, experiment with, and combine into an infinite number of unique builds and strategies....

Recently, Supergiant released the full version of its new game, Hades. The rogue-lite game is based on Greek mythology, where the player takes on the role of Hades’ son Zagreus as he attempts to escape from the underworld. On his adventures, Zagreus encounters many different gods, goddesses, and characters of legend, and his conversations with them evolve as the game progresses. Depending on what choices the player makes during their run, the other characters may comment on the boons that Zagreus has received or his current weapon....

The launch of Hades v1.0 has finally taken the game out of early access, and players have been quick to jump into the Underworld and discover everything the game has to offer, like bosses, weapons, and the unique weapon aspects. Everyone has their own favorite way to play, including the developers at Supergiant Games that designed the weapons of Hades. In a recent interview with Game Rant, Hades Creative Director Greg Kasavin revealed what his own personal favorite weapon aspect in the game is....

Being true to form for the franchise, Half-Life: Alyx is full of interactable objects for the player to mess around with. Lots of basic in-game items become extremely fun when implemented into a VR game, and there isn’t much that can rival the feeling of throwing a glass object at a wall or ceiling and watching it shatter. This list will cover 10 of the best objects in the game that players can play around with....

It might not seem like it, but it’s been almost twenty years since Valve redefined the FPS genre with Half-Life in November 1998. Fans might be forgiven for thinking that the studio has forgotten about the franchise, but a new patch released this week reveals that this isn’t the case. Valve has updated the original Half-Life with a number of minor fixes to issues that have been raised by the community....

While gaming consoles often prove to be more commercially popular and more affordable up front, PC gaming is still a booming industry for gamers who prefer highly customizable gaming experiences. Incredibly powerful PCs like the Origin PC Neuron can run with a GeForce RTX 3080 GPU and an AMD Ryzen 9 3.7GHx CPU, which basically lets gamers play anything they want on max settings. But unless one is willing to put money into a gaming laptop, PCs aren’t devices that can be stuffed in a backpack for travel purposes....

The initial reception to the new Harry Potter mobile game was positive at first, due to the game’s high quality and production values for what it was. This quickly soured when the inevitable happened and the game halted its progress and opened its hand. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery is essentially a fanfiction game where you get to play as a self-insert Hogwarts student during the period of time when Bill Weasley and Nymphadora Tonks were both attending the school....

With Persona 4 Golden’s recent successful launch on Steam, many question if the PS Vita will continue to live. Now that Persona 4 isn’t a console exclusive anymore, what will bring people to buy the Vita? Almost nothing can bring people to buy the handheld console anymore. Persona 4 Golden was the best game on the console, and the reason why many bought said console. With the title originally releasing on the PlayStation 2, fans have waited a long time for a chance to experience the updated version....

For a limited time, HBO is offering a ton of free movies and tv shows for anyone who wants to watch them amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Detective Pikachu, The Sopranos, and The Wire are among the catalogue, giving you plenty to watch while you’re sitting at home with nothing to do. Many streaming services have been offering promotions during the coronavirus outbreak given that millions of people are spending most of their time at home....

As I sat staring down at my Nintendo Switch screen, my eyes glazing over as I gazed straight through the screen, I had a single prevailing thought: “This game isn’t very good.” It was early on in Heaven’s Vault, and I was tasked with deciphering yet another piece of ancient text with absolutely zero context clues. The text in question is a series of squiggly lines and dashes, and I’ll be damned if it’s supposed to be any kind of language I should be able to interpret....

For those already looking to change their VALORANT display name, whether because you are already sick of it or regret your original (and possibly cringe) display name for your Riot account you made when you were younger, you’re in luck. There is an easy way to change your display name and finally expressing yourself the way you always wanted. Your VALORANT display name is linked to your Riot account so it is fairly easy to change your name at the moment and in the future as the game fully launches this summer....

The most gripping scene in the His Dark Materials episode ‘Theft’ is a two-hander between Ruth Wilson and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Mrs Coulter and Lee Scoresby. (As their daemons are a key part of things, the scene could more properly be described as a two-hands and eight-paws-er, but let’s not be cute about it.) The threats, however, bounce off him. As Lee tells Marisa, he learnt at an early age that he was good with pain....

Warning: contains spoilers for His Dark Materials episodes 3.5 and 3.6. It’s unkind to revel in someone else’s failure, but what a gift that this is The Amber Spyglass adaptation we got. It’s hard to imagine New Line Cinema’s defunct film trilogy getting anywhere near so much so right. The Mulefa, the Land of the Dead, Marisa Coulter’s transformation… all of Philip Pullman’s weirdest and most beautiful ideas have been cradled on their way to the screen by this extraordinary creative team and cast....

Hitman 2 was released last November and has been going strong since with regular updates and content. Part of the reason for the game’s success is the attention to detail put into every part of the game’s levels. Beyond the main mission stories that guide the players through each target, there are countless other things that are never so much as mentioned. Whether it’s an unconventional way to exit the mission, a hidden strategy to take out the targets, or turning people into flamingos, Hitman 2 is full to bursting with secret content....

Lucky Pause’s Homesick game is about as far away from the mass-market appeal of games like Call of Duty as it’s possible to be. Slow, atmospheric, and focused on exploration, Homesick is a haunting and strikingly positive game despite its grim nature. Featuring gorgeous environments, a beautiful soundtrack, and a mysterious, rewarding story to piece together, this Homesick game is a strong example of the power of interactive fiction. Mysterious Story and Moodiness Characterize Homesick Game When you start Lucky Pause’s Homesick game, you don’t really have much to go on....